G20 leaders vow to vaccinate 70% world population by mid-2022

Underlining that vaccines are among the most important tools against the Covid pandemic, G20 leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Sunday vowed to take steps to boost its supply in developing nations and remove relevant supply as well as financing constraints for advancing toward the global goal of vaccinating at least 40 per cent of the population in all countries by the end of 2021 and 70 per cent by mid-2022.

In the Rome Declaration, the G20 leaders thanked healthcare and frontline workers, international organisations and scientists for their relentless efforts to cope with the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.

'Recognising that vaccines are among the most important tools against the pandemic, and reaffirming that extensive COVID-19 immunisation is a global public good, we will advance our efforts to ensure timely, equitable and universal access to safe, affordable, quality and effective vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics, with particular regard to the needs of low- and middle-income countries,' the G20 nations said in their declaration at the Summit in Rome.

'To help advance toward the global goals of vaccinating at least 40 per cent of the population in all countries by the end of 2021 and 70 per cent by mid-2022, as recommended by the World Health Organization's (WHO) global vaccination strategy, we will take steps to help boost the supply of vaccines and essential medical products and inputs in developing countries and remove relevant supply and financing constraints,' the leaders said.

They also asked their health ministers to monitor progress toward this end and to explore ways to accelerate global vaccination as necessary.

'We will reinforce global strategies to support research and development as well as to ensure their production and swift and equitable distribution worldwide, also by strengthening supply chains and by expanding and diversifying global vaccine manufacturing capacity at local and regional level, while promoting vaccine acceptance, confidence and fighting disinformation,' the G20 nations said.

They also committed to achieving food security and adequate nutrition for all, leaving no one behind.

The G-20 nations, including India, also committed to strengthen actions to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030.

The declaration said that the leaders also agreed to endeavour to restart international travel in a safe and orderly manner.

'We look forward to meeting again in Indonesia in 2022, in India in 2023 and in Brazil in 2024,' the G20 said.

The G20 is a leading global forum that brings together the world's major economies.

Its members account for more than 80 per cent of the global GDP, 75 per cent of global trade and 60 per cent of the population of the planet.